Here we post announcements, new publications. Since September 1971 with the assistance of Rhoda Ross we published over 32,000 pages of material on the Glengarry County Ontario and area, Gravestone Inscriptions, Church Records BMD, Family Histories etc. Download Our Title list
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Tuesday, December 10, 2013

In going throughout some of our old correspondence, I came across the following from the Connecticut Society of Genealogists Inc of Glastonbury, Conn 06033 which was part of a article in the Nutmegger of March 1982 V-14 #4 [AWF]

One must be always mindful that the court proceedings are public records; therefore, available to us as researchers. The challenges to the genealogist are to discover the location of these records and then to search the pertinent documents for references to our people. Unfortunately we cannot identify a standard for all states as to the exact cases for which each court shall be responsible, or even, for that matter what the court shall be called. Each state possesses its own criteria for court jurisdiction; our job as a serious researcher is to become familiar with the state in which our research is centered.

We can, however, list some of the matters dealt with in most early courts:

Adultery

Assault

Being a Vagabond

Calling the Deacon Bad Words

Change of Names

Corrupting Tar

Cow, Hog, or Horse Killing

Debt

Divorce

Embezzlement

Infamous Writing

Failure to Assist Marshall

Lascivious Carriage Personal

Property Disputes

Quaker

Refusing Court/Jury Duty

Singing in the Tavern

Smoking

Theft

Trespass

Witchcraft

Affronting of an Officer

Bastardy

Breach of Peace

Card Playing

Church Attendance

Counterfeiting

Cursing and Swearing

Dishonest Behavior

Drunkeness

Fornication

Failure to Take Oath of Allegiance

Killing Deer

Lying

Profaning the Lord's Day

Real Estate Disputes

Sale of Guns or Liquor to Indians

Slander

Speaking Evil of Him That Dispenses the Word of God

An interesting aside when discussing early colonial court matters is a study of the most frequent crimes brought to court in the Plymouth Colony and later Plymouth County, Massachusetts:

I. 1660-1669

Quaker

Drunkeness and Fornication (tie)

Assault

II. 1686-1774

Fornication

Assault

Theft

It is imperative that the serious researcher has a general knowledge of the basic procedures of a civil court case from a genealogical point of view:

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

My name is Rohinton Ghandhi, Ro for short, I'm a local historical researcher/writer doing a story on our own Magic Tom Auburn of Montreal (NDG), and I was hoping you may have some details of him or know of anyone who still may be able to provide some first-hand accounts! That would be so very cool to capture, before some of these stories all simply fade away...

Many of Mr. Auburn's information indicates that he came from Aultsville, Ontario. I have been in contact with Byron Auburn at the CTV News desk in Toronto, and unfortunately he could not confirm if his dad/family did in fact come from that town in Ontario.

Magic Tom and his wife are buried in the Cornwall region at the St. Lawrence Valley Cemetary near Long Sault/Cornwall yet they also could not confirm his birthplace as Aultsville, Ontario. They must have had some roots in the Aultsville stories validities, somewhere in the Auburn family history.

- Do you know of any existing Aultsville town registries or directories that could contain this information?

Magic Tom Auburn Gravestone. photo from Cornwall Roots

The Montreal Lovell Directory records Tom's father, William George auburn as first living at 162 Ethel St, here in Verdun, Montreal. He was listed as a toolmaker in 1915.

- And if so, is there anyway that I may validate or disclude that Tom Rochon Auburn was born in Aultsville, Ontario? As I truly hate conjecture, preferring to rely on existing factual information for my story on this once great man! We owe it to him to "get it right".

Do you remember Magic Tom, yourself as a Canadian? I had to ask as each bit of information is like a puzzle piece that could only add to the larger than life Magic Tom that we all still envision in our minds. Funny what we can clearly recall from our childhood, isn't it?

Magic Tom is as Montreal as you can get. He was a great man and a perfect representative of our once world-class city. I would love to accurately write a story on this one local gentleman who was my childhood TV icon (on CFCF 12), to most of us in those great days that once completed each of our own Montreal experiences. I hope you are able to help in getting his story straight....

I have found so many photos and story write-ups of Tom Auburn the local Magician, the troops entertainer, the places he played in from 1931 to 1942 through the original pages of the Verdun Guardian Newspaper, digitizing them before they turn to dust. I also have the story and pick of “local Magician enlists” from 1942, with photo, and many more that I have catalogued and kept as Jpegs.

In fact, this Sunday, I have visited the archivist at St. Willibrord’s Church to see Tom Auburns’ graduation year’s records for 1936 and for years beyond, as the church ran Willibrord’s High school then! Will also look for photos of Delores Arlene Edwards his high school sweetheart as most accounts, included on the tomauburn website.

Here's his Feb 20th, 1942 wedding announcement to Delores, I found in the pages of the Verdun Guardian. They were married on Feb 14, 1942, Valentine’s day the article states (attached). Also, a pic of the day he enlisted here in Montreal in 1941.

Thanks so much, I hope you will be able to provide many more details on this Montreal great.

Plaxo Badge

About Me Alex Fraser

ALEX W FRASER, or Alex Fraser born County of Glengarry, whose U E L ancestors settled in 1784, attended school, Lancaster, Williamstown, worked for Bell Canada, 1967 got ill at school in Ottawa, Ont. During convalescence 1971, he interested himself in the ancestry of his mother, father, pursued this quest by searching local records, cemeteries, he copied headstone inscriptions leading to the publication of Gravestones of Glengarry V 1 1976, V 2 1978.,V 3 1988, V 4 2008.V5 Kirk Hill, V6 Breadalbane, V7 Lochiel, V8 Glen Nevis 2011, published over 28,000 pages of material on the Glengarry Stormont County Ontario Area.
1992 he received the Canada 125th Anniversary medal, 1997 “The Morley K Thomas Award “ for 30 years of weather observing.
1998 Alex joined NATO/Bitron, started using the excellent product to reduce fuel, maintenance costs, 2006 under Bitron reached the Director, Founder, Presidential level in Bitron, averaging with his 1997 GMC 1/2 truck these 10+ years basically every 3rd tank of gas Free.
Rhoda Ross is a great assistance in collecting, sorting, publishing these works. The MacNaughton’s of Glengarry County Ontario area is her creation in this 4 volume work.